Ibanez in the lineup again vs. Indians

CLEVELAND -- At least Mike Scioscia has a sense of humor about playing Raul Ibanez.

When asked today why he chose to play Ibanez and his .153 average instead of C.J. Cron at designated hitter, Scioscia deadpanned: "I don't know. Doesn't make sense, does it?"

While the slumping Ibanez has continued to play -- only against right-handers, and batting seventh or eighth -- Scioscia has steadfastly maintained that there is still hope for the 42-year-old.

Ibanez has two hits and two walks in seven plate appearances in Cleveland.

"There’s no doubt that he’s making some strides in the batter’s box and you’re seeing better swings," Scioscia said. "The bottom line is production. Nobody understands that better than Raul. He knows that he needs to contribute and have better at-bats. Nobody is working harder at it than Raul, and we’re very confident that he’s going to contribute for us."

Another factor was Indians starter Justin Masterson's splits. He's allowed lefties to hit .304 and righties to hit .213 this season. Although Ibanez, a left-handed hitter, is 3 for 18 in his career against Masterston, he had a triple and a single against him when he faced him in April.

Meanwhile, C.J. Cron has not started in a week. Scioscia said on Tuesday that Cron's spot may need be re-evaluated if they don't find spots to play him. The Angels only see one left-handed pitcher through this weekend. The probables haven't been released for the Minnesota Twins series next week in Anaheim, but the Twins have all right-handed starters right now.

"It’s how it works," Cron said. "Obviously, I want to be in there as much as possible. But I’m not in the lineup, so I’ll be ready in case a pinch-hit comes or whatever."

In other Angels news, Tyler Skaggs threw a bullpen session and said it went well. In the next few days he'll throw a simulated game. If he has no problems, he could be activated next week.

When he is, either Hector Santiago or Matt Shoemaker is expected to be knocked out of the rotation. Scioscia said it's possible that whoever is knocked out of the rotation goes to the bullpen, rather than Triple-A. That wouldn't be sustainable for the rest of the season, though, because at some point the pitcher who goes to the bullpen would need to rebuild his endurance.

"There’s no doubt that whoever is in our rotation can conceivably help out in our bullpen," Scioscia said. "Especially in the shorter term, because you do have a little time before guys’ length would start to evaporate. Both guys have shown that when they’ve been down in the bullpen they’ve been able to go out and still give you those 80 to 100 pitches you might need."

Tonight, C.J. Wilson is scheduled to face Masterson. As of an hour before the scheduled 4 p.m. PT first pitch, it's raining pretty hard. The forecast is for a chance of rain all night.

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